Don't be a wishy-washy wash-out

How often do you think to yourself on training night, "Oh, I'm really not in the mood tonight." Then you'll spend the next hour trying to find reasons to justify not going - "Well, I've got homework to do for tomorrow," or "I don't feel 100 percent, I'd better not go and make myself worse."

The truth of the matter is, you're being a weak-willed wuss. That's right, I called you a wuss!

Why do you think that dojos are not crammed with black belts? Is it because no one's been training long enough? No! It's because most people lack the will-power and self-discipline to stick with karate until they achieve the highest level.

Although most students who have been going for a few months say that they want to get a high belt - even a black belt - it takes very little to derail most people from achieving success. They all-too quickly follow the path of least effort. Rather than doggedly pursuing the path to becoming good at karate, they wince at the tiniest effort and start trying to find excuses why they don't have to train. The trouble is, once you let yourself off one week when you really didn't need to, then the next time it becomes easier, and the justification doesn't need to be so severe. It starts with, "I thought I had anthrax," but before you know it, "I thought the cat looked a bit lonely," is excuse enough. You skip one week one time. Then next time you miss a couple, then suddenly it's a month since you last trained. Believe me, I know, it happened to me with my previous style! It's only my belief in the benefits of GKR Karate that make me turn up to train sometimes.

So instead of finding reasons NOT to train, start looking for reasons TO train. "It'll make me more confident. It'll give me a stronger heart. It'll earn me my next belt quicker. I can work on that thing I've been working on." Set yourself goals and keep them in mind when you feel yourself start to falter.

Tell yourself that karate is compulsory, not optional. It's much easier to accept something when you have no choice in the matter. There's no point attending just long enough to get a glimpse of all the cool things that you could be good at, but then leaving just as you start to master some of them. Karate is a long-term pursuit. Sure, you might get some benefits from just attending a few months, but you gain immeasurably more by sticking with it until you master it.